SEOUL – A South Korean court granted on May 18 a partial injunction requested by Samsung Electronics, ordering the company’s union in the country to ensure its strike does not cut into production volume, a court spokesperson said.The court also said in the ruling that union action must not lead to the degradation of materials used in the world’s largest memory chip maker’s production, the spokesperson said by telephone.Samsung and its largest labour union are set to resume negotiations on May 18 to avert an 18-day walkout starting on May 21 that the nation’s prime minister warned could wreak havoc on the economy. Management and union representatives will meet for the talks on wages and compensation, with Samsung having reported an operating profit that soared on artificial intelligence-driven demand for its semiconductors. “Along with the entire public, we earnestly request Samsung’s management and union to achieve results during the mediation tomorrow, which is virtually the last chance,” Prime Minister Kim Min-Seok said in an address to the nation on May 17.“If the strike becomes a reality, the economic damage that we have to face would be unimaginable.”Mr Kim estimated that the labour action would cost up to 1 trillion won (S$856 million) per day if the Samsung chip factory remains shut. He also signalled for the first time that the government could resort to emergency powers to prevent a strike if the parties fail to reach an agreement. He said the government would pursue “all measures, including emergency powers”, if the labour action threatened the economy. Samsung chairman Jay Y. Lee issued a rare apology on May 16 for the company’s “internal issues” causing concern.Government-mediated negotiations broke down in early May, with management and the union unable to bridge a gap between the workers’ demands and executives’ offers.The union is calling on Samsung to expand performance-based compensation as earnings rebound on AI infrastructure demand. Labour leaders want Samsung to scrap an existing cap on bonuses, allocate 15 per cent of operating profit to worker bonuses, and formalise the terms in employment contracts. Samsung has proposed allocating 10 per cent of operating profit to bonuses, along with a one-time special compensation package that exceeds industry standards. Company executives have argued that the union’s demands would be difficult to sustain over the long term. REUTERS, BLOOMBERG